Were it All Began
by Remus Lumos
Summary: A collection of short scenes from Lupin's childhood, maybe with a bit of jumping around but I'll try to go in order. PG rating is conservative at most. My first fanfic, so please read and review! Thanks!
1. The Bite

The Bite- 1966  
  
"Robert!" Helena screamed into the nighttime forest, terrified for her son and husband. The slim, long-faced woman was ducking her head out of the window of the muggle camper, her long blonde hair waving in the light breeze, eyes wide and searching the darkness for signs of movement, one hand on the window shutter, the other clutching the sill.   
  
"ROBERT-" she screamed again, cutting herself off at the end of the name, straining her ears for what she thought might be the sound of something crashing towards the camper through the underbrush. She struggled to hear the sounds, most of them drowned out by the howls that seemed to be getting closer. Two legs, just two. Then four, close behind and getting closer. Helena flew at the door, preparing to open it quickly to admit her husband or son, whichever was currently running for safety, for their life.   
  
Helena stuck her head out the door just in time to see the dark, somewhat indiscernible form of her husband, dark brown hair blown back, carrying their son in his arms, rushing at the camper. For a moment Helena breathed a sigh of relief; they were safe. But she screamed seconds later when it appeared: the monster, in hot pursuit of her men.   
  
"Helen, open the door!" Robert's deep voice somehow penetrated the insane rage of the werewolf's howls. Helena threw the door wide as Robert closed the distance to the camper, little Remus screaming in his arms. Helena assumed that Robert was not using magic only because he could not get to his wand in his pocket. Helena herself was a muggle, and could do no magic whatsoever.   
  
Robert was nearly inside the door when he tripped on the threshold, banging Remus' head on the first of the two stairs leading inside. Robert scrambled inside, turned, grabbed his son by the arm and neck of his sweater, and tried to pull him inside and close the door before the werewolf got to them. He tried, but he failed. Remus had almost scrabbled his way through the door, which was closing on his foot painfully as his father yanked him inside, when the werewolf reached them, opened his jaws, and clamped them down on Remus' dangling right leg.   
  
Remus screamed louder than ever, eyes wide in terror, as the combined pain of the wolf's bite, the heavy door, his buggered head, and his father's fingernails digging into the skin of his arm did its work on him. It was a terrible tug-of-war between Robert and the werewolf.   
  
Finally, Helena stepped over her husband and son, opened the door, threw her shoe at the werewolf's head and screamed, "Let him GO!" The hard rubber sole hit the monster squarely on the nose, causing its jaws to pop open as it released both Remus and a high-pitched yelp at the same time. In the werewolf's pain and shock, the door banged shut, Helena slammed her hand down on the latch, and Robert pulled his son up the rest of the way up to the floor of the camper. As soon as they were certain that the door was secure, the Lupin parents scrambled across the camper, shutting and barricading windows, then returning to Remus, for his leg was now bleeding quite profusely.  
  
Helena sat behind her son and held him upright as her husband searched the camper for a towel, a spare piece of clothing, anything to help stop the bleeding. The camper frequently jolted and shook as the werewolf slammed its body against it; an action that would give the metal walls and door large dents, but not make them yield to its will. Finding nothing suitable and clean, Robert pulled his own shirt over his head and knelt beside Remus' leg, lifting it slowly and tenderly wrapping the cotton shirt around his calf. He had just finished dressing the wound and was proceeding to apply firm pressure to it when a deep, long howl came from outside the camper. Helena started, then closed her eyes, squeezing tears from their corners.  
  
Remus eventually fell asleep, and the werewolf followed suit soon after. There was a long silence while the werewolf and the boy slept, Remus' mother never releasing him and his father only taking his hands from the wound to go to the window, make sure that the werewolf was not an immediate threat to his family. The Lupins watched their son's shallow breathing for nearly an hour before the silence was finally broken by Helena.  
  
"What are we going to do?" she whispered. "He's only six, Rob!" She seemed to be pleading to her husband for more than he had to give.  
  
"I know, I know. If only I could get to the truck!" Robert grimaced and clutched his free hand into a fist. Helena looked away for a moment, then her eyes came to rest on her son's leg for the hundredth time that night.  
  
"What if he bleeds to death before we get him out of here?" Really, this was nothing more than a distraught mother's hysterics, as the bleeding of Remus' leg had slowed quite considerably in the last hour and had nearly stopped.   
  
"I don't think that's going to happen. The best we can do is get him to St. Mungo's as soon as the sun rises. Maybe... maybe they can help him there," he finished. Helena opened her mouth to say something else, but couldn't and shut it. They both knew that there was no known cure for the werewolf's bite, but neither of them could be brought to say it aloud, almost as if not wording it would keep it from being true. Robert was right; the best they could do was hold Remus and wait for the sun. Wait... the best they could do. All they could do.   
  
A/N: Special thanks to WhiteRose101, who gave me my first review! I'm not quite sure when I'll post the next chapter. I have about four other chapters started already, but if I want to go in order, then I'll have to get one of the unfinished ones up next. Unfortunately, the next one in the order is the one that's giving me the most trouble. So if anyone has any ideas on how I could maybe make an eventful chapter out of Remus in his hospital room in St. Mungo's the morning after the bite, tell me in a review!   
  
But once that's over with, the next chapters should come easily :)  
  
Once again, thanks! And remember: constructive criticism is in many ways more helpful to recieve, even if not as fun.   
  
Whoo... first fic jitters seem to be leaving. I also have a copy of this fic on COS forums (whenever the new server goes up), but the one on here is slightly modified, and (I think) better.   
  
Thanks and enjoy! Oh, and review and I'll love you forever!  
  
I'm stupid, almost forgot the disclaimer: I don't own Remus Lupin (oh, how I wish!) and am only using him because I love him so and because I wanted to write a story. I would not dream of trying to make money off of that lucky and brilliant woman who does own him, JK Rowling, whom I also love. Anything that is hers is not mine, obviously, and anything not hers IS mine! W00t! I think that should pretty much cover it... 


	2. Notchings Primary School 1966

A/N: I wanted to put the chapters in order, but I was having too much trouble with the next one and I couldn't wait to put another chapter up, so I did. This "chapter" can stand alone, so you should understand it. Basically all that happened in between was that Remus was taken to St. Mungo's where, as was mentioned earlier, they could do basically nothing to help him. Sorry this one's a bit shorter than the last. Enjoy anyway!  
  
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Notchings Primary School- 1966  
  
_Why do they all have to stare?_ Remus wondered as he gathered the papers and glue and other school supplies in his desk. Did they think he was going to transform right in front of them and snap someone up?  
  
After he'd been released from St. Mungo's, Remus' parents had decided to remove him from Notchings, a primary school that accepted both wizard students and muggle students that knew about the wizarding world. Robert Lupin had taken Remus to the school in the middle of the day to collect his things from his desk, and his former classmates were now watching him with mixed fear and curiosity, and with wide eyes. Thanks to an annoying up-and-coming reporter from the Daily Prophet, the entire wizard population of Britain now knew about "that poor boy that got bit by a werewolf during a family camping trip". As if the staring students weren't bad enough, even his former teacher, Mrs. Lernid, seemed to be afraid to come within a few feet of him.   
  
Remus gathered up his supplies as quickly as possible and turned to look at Daniel Loyell, a muggle and Remus' best friend before he'd been forbidden to play with him anymore. Daniel didn't see the look, however, as he was the only one staring down at his desk rather than his former classmate.   
  
"Bye, Danny," Remus whispered as he passed the incredibly thin, black-haired boy's desk. Daniel didn't say anything, but his eyebrows lowered a bit as he continued to stare sadly at his desk. Remus moved on down to the end of the row where his father and former first-grade teacher were waiting. Mrs. Lernid was a tall, jittery, middle-aged woman with huge glasses and hair that she piled on top of her head in a cone-like shape. She took a step back, accidentally backing into her own desk behind her, as Remus neared the end of the row. "Bye, Mrs. Lernid," Remus said.   
  
"Goodbye, Remus. We'll all miss you," the stricken-looking teacher managed to squeak out, her voice unusually high-pitched as she wrung her hands and forced a smile, which revealed her incredibly large teeth. _Liar._ Remus thought. Robert took some finger-paintings and a pencil box from his son's arms and led the way from the classroom and into the hallway. Before the door closed, Remus glanced over his shoulder into the classroom where Daniel still hadn't looked away from the surface of his desk and Mrs. Lernid seemed to be letting out a huge sigh of relief. Remus then followed his father down the still hallway, silently watching the floor and taking wide steps as he tried to step only on every other tile. After a few moments, Robert cleared his throat.  
  
"Being home-schooled won't be that bad, Remus. You can still have plenty of friends...and you never know, Danny's mother may come around one of these days," Robert said tentatively. Remus did not respond, simply stared at the floor, having lost interest in his game. He very much doubted that any of what his father had said was true. The two of them went to the end of the hallway, where the school's three fireplaces used specifically for floo-ing were. Robert held some of the papers and helped Remus into the fireplace, and right before the green flames blocked his sight, Remus took one last look down the hallway of Notchings. He would never see the school again through the entire course of his life.   
  
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A/N: Thanks to the reviewers of my first "chapter":   
**Animagus Brushtail** & **Yoko73**:  
You have no idea how glad I am that you liked it. Thanks!  
  
**jess moony** & **WhiteRose101**:  
Here's the next chapter, hope you like it as much as the last!  
  
Special thanks to **Nicky the Destroyer**, who gave me a lovely review as well as a useful piece of constructive criticism. This has some of what Remus is thinking, and although I'm sure it's not quite as much as you wanted, I promise that I have another chapter in the works that will have plenty of Remus' thoughts swirling around!  
Thanks again!   
  
You know, I heard a rumor that reviews tend to loosen up writer's block...:D 


	3. The First Transformation

Transformation- 1966  
  
The first transformation would bring only two words to mind whenever Remus thought about it later in life: 'excruciating' and 'terrifying'. He cried miserably for the hour before it began. His parents had bought a room made of steel wires that was about ten feet square; a cage, in every sense of the word, which they placed in the basement and watched while he sat in a corner of it, curled up, crying, and waiting for the inevitable. Since there was no way to tell when the transformation would begin, exactly, Helena and Robert were forced to lock up their beloved son as soon as the sun set. This decision to leave him in such a state would grow to become one of those decisions that parents regret, but as they could not know this, what was done was done. And so Robert and Helena, keeping distant from their son, watched him go through the worst experience of his life, all alone and terribly afraid.   
  
The Lupins had been instructed to leave open a window that faced the eastern sky, because the transformation could only begin when Remus was bathed in the rays of the full moon. They had also been warned not to try to keep it from happening, for it would only result in Remus being in extreme pain for days afterward. The window was open and unobstructed, but there were clouds overhead, covering the moon and making the night pitch black. Remus had been locked up in his cage for an hour when the clouds finally thinned and the first rays began to shine through.  
  
And then it began.   
  
Remus' crying had slowed as he started to feel the changes. At first it was only a slight feeling of queasiness, which built up until Remus doubled over, convinced that he really would vomit. Just when he thought he could no longer hold it down, he wrenched his mouth open and choked out a scream; a scream that was already more animal than human. The screams/howls paused as Remus finally did spew a stream of light orange vomit, coughing for a moment before he emptied his stomach again, and then the screaming/howling resumed. Helena, who had been weeping uncontrollably since the key had turned in the lock on Remus' cage, stifled a small scream of her own, followed by a shaking sob. She clung to Robert, burying her face in his chest, unable to watch as her only child convulsed, howling with pain and fear. As he slowly lost his human mind, the howls became emotionless and canine. Robert watched what his wife could not: Remus' teeth grow longer and sharper, his hair grow thicker and spread all over in a gray wave of fur. Remus yelped in pain as his knees reversed, whimpered as his spine elongated and grew flesh to cover his new tufted tail. His lips curled over his wolfish teeth, the skin turning from a pinkish tint to beige, then black. His ears, molded like clay in invisible hands, became pointed and seemed to slide up the sides of his head.   
  
Remus gave another piercing howl, then slumped to the floor, partially laying in his own vomit, his back to his parents. He shuddered and lay there for a full minute before he slowly got up on all fours. The transformation was complete.   
  
Robert took a step forward, loosening his hold on his wife, hoping it was done, wondering what was to come next, checking for signs that Remus could - contrary to what the Healers of St. Mungo's had told them - still have a human mind. Robert could hear his son's heavy breathing, could see that he was sniffing the air. Remus slowly turned his head to see them.   
  
Robert stumbled back, afraid of what he saw in those golden, inhuman eyes. Of course, he could not expect to see Remus' hazel irises staring back at him, a human boy's voice come out of that throat, a smile on those lips. What he saw in those eyes wasn't anything remotely human. It was pure aggression. A low growl startled Helena, causing her to look up at him for the first time in nearly five minutes. She stared, completely still and silent, at what used to be her son's face. Suddenly the werewolf leapt at her, snapping his jaws. He ran headlong into the wire cage and began to claw at the steel, still growling and biting at nothing. Helena screamed and fell back on the stone floor, banging her wrist hard on it. Robert swept down on his knees, holding his wife from behind, rocking her as they cried together and their son tried to kill them.  
  
Eventually the werewolf gave up trying to get to the Lupins, and bit himself, bit the wire cage, slipped on the sick-covered floor, and tore up the remains of his clothing that had split and fallen off during his change. Only a few hours later did he finally fall asleep from the exhaustion of attacking inanimate objects, and only then did his parents succumb to sleep in each others' arms.   
  
A/N: I don't feel as good about this "chapter" as I used to, but I figure it's time I added another, so I put it up anyway.  
Thanks to WhiteRose101 and jess moony who reviewed chapter two. I really appreciate knowing that someone reads this!  
Until next time, wooty wooty woo!  
  
-Remus Lumos 


	4. A Year Later

Remus' Room- 1967  
  
Remus sat at his desk near the window, reading a captivating muggle book about a Frenchman who was wrongly imprisoned for years in a fortress-like jail on the sea and eventually escaped to seek revenge on those who framed him. Although it was a sunny day, he much preferred burying his mind in "The Count of Monte Cristo" rather than going outside. He had done that quite a bit in the last year or so: give up the outdoors, which he had loved (this a characteristic he'd learned from his father), in favor of a piece of literature, usually reccomended by his mother. Ever since that night in May of last year when the Lupin's annual family camping trip in the woods went tragically wrong (an incident now referred to by the Lupins simply as "the camping trip"), Remus had lost his enthusiasm for nature.  
  
All in all, it was miraculous that the boy was not consumed by bitterness and self-loathing, as many others who've found themselves inflicted with Lycanthropy are. Of course, there were times when Remus would have envious thoughts, but these were few and far between, for Remus was a very sensible boy. Like today: he sat in his chair, consumed by his book until a sudden noise outside made him look up. The neighbor children, two boys a few years older than he, fighting over a broomstick in their yard. Remus watched as the boy managed to wrest the broom away from his brother and flew up and out of sight.   
  
_At least you have a friend to fight with,_ the thought came, but was not really accompanied by any strong feelings, and then was gone, Remus turned back to his book, and five minutes later would not be able to remember ever having thought such a thing.  
  
No, Remus was not bitter, or at least not overly so. It had not taken him long from the first full moon after the bite for him to really know what it meant to be a werewolf. Yes, he knew that werewolves were people who became wolves on the full moon, and knew (all too well) that those who were bitten by said wolves were cursed themselves. But he did not know what it meant to be labeled as such. He did not know how it felt to cause a person to run away and scream when he was recognized (thanks to the Daily Prophet) on the street, or how alienated it felt to be denied admittance to stores in Diagon Alley when his parents took him there for a weekend, determined to find a way to lift his drowning spirits. He now knew how it felt to be different, for he had caught on quickly.  
  
The monthly transformations were not the only effect that Remus' lycanthropy had on him. Mentally, he had matured faster, and seemed several years older than he was (a trait that would never leave him, as his hair started to gray not long after his 32nd birthday). And speaking of his hair, it had changed from his mother's blond to a light brown, seemingly a compromise between his parents' haircolors. He was a right little bookworm, and quiet, too. Few traces of the once boisterous and carefree personality of his childhood remained, although he was only seven.   
  
"Remus, dinner!" called Helena. Remus dog-eared the corner of the page he was on and set the book on his desk, glancing almost longingly out the window at the younger brother, who was still yelling up at his unseen brother before jogging out his bedroom door and down the stairs.

A/N: Don't really feel like this "chapter" has enough action. Then again, it's really more about how being a werewolf changed Remus from being a rough-and-tumble, nature-loving kid to the quiet, subdued and somewhat reclusive kid we see when he gets to Hogwarts.   
Anyway, as always, I appreciate feedback on this (especially constructive criticism). This time, I'd also like to know what you think about some ideas I've been working on:   
-First ride on the Hogwarts Express (although I think I'm going to save that one for last, when I'm finally all done with this fic).  
-The whole situation that lead to Remus actually getting to go to Hogwarts (so excited about the idea of writing Dumbledore! W00t!).  
-A little chat with Remus and his parents about another cure that they want to try.   
  
Please review and tell me, because I love reviews and ideas! Thanks again to my faithful reviewers, WhiteRose101, jess moony, and Yoko73. I really, really appreciate that you guys take the time to R&R. Oh, and I'd also like to thank Yami Padfoot and DeepThought3900, who each gave a review recently.   
Whoo, I'm terrible at keeping author's notes short, so I'm shutting up now :D 


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